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Criminal Punishment and Conditions of Execution in the USA
Introduction
The rule of law is important for the stabilization of any state across the world. In order to enhance efficiency in stabilizing any state, laws, and regulations are u tint place, which helps in governing the people, showing them what they have to do, and what they cannot do (Clark 395). Whether legal or even bylaws, their breaking leads an individual to face the consequences, which in most times come in form of a punishment. In most cases, punishments come as an imposition of conditions which are unpleasant, or inhumane, to an individual, or individuals, with the aim of making them pay for something they did wrong, and which they should not have done, so as to help change their behavior (Blinder 3). This study, therefore, focuses on two major areas: the criminal punishment and the conditions of execution in the USA.
Criminal Punishment in the US
Criminals punishment in the US dates back to the days of independence when the US constitution was set in place to help the country run its affairs and even enhance a peaceful coexistence among the various members of the community (Marcus 840). In the US, their rate of crime has gone up with a very high rate, and so, has the system of dealing with the crimes, and punishing the individuals who break the law, making a majority of the US citizens spend most of the time and life in prisons, or under punishments (Currie Para 3). In the US, any criminal punishment should be in line with the US constitution, since the constitution is the supreme law in the land, and any legal decision made should be a reflection of its stipulations (Materni 290). In the US, criminal punishment is carried out for various reasons, which include: Retribution, which is giving the punishment that offenders deserve, Rehabilitation, which is the process of turning an individual from an offender to a better member of the society, Deterrence which is the process of making individual fear punishments in future, hence changing their behavior, and lastly, incapacitation, which is preventing future crimes from the society, by removing certain individuals (Mishra 75).
Types of Criminal Punishments in the US
In the US, there are various classifications of the criminal punishments, depending on the extent of mistakes one has committed. The first and biggest of the criminal punishments is the death penalty in the US (Williams 17). In the US, there are thirty one states (31), which have the death penalty still in existence while, nineteen (19), states have done away with the death punishment, and the other four (4), have the death penalty in existence but with the gubernatorial moratoria (Death Penalty Information Center Para 2). The death penalty is executed in various ways in the US, which include: hanging, gas chambers, Lethal Injection, Shooting, Electrocution, burning, among other methods, each used differently in each of the thirty-one states (Drehle Para 10). Other types of criminal punishments include Incarcerations, the Probations, which comprises of the fines, House arrest and electronic monitoring, the Boot camps, and the Boot camps, and the Intensive supervision probation (ISP) (Ashcroft 19).
Arguments Presented in relation to Criminal Punishment in the US
There are various arguments which have been presented in relation to the criminal punishment in the US. There are many individuals who support the idea of criminal punishment, while others are against the idea for a various reason. In this section, the focus shall be the analysis of the criminal punishment, based on the individuals who are for the idea, and those who are against. The individuals who are for the idea of criminal punishment state that the criminal punishment provides the best warning, and the ultimate challenge to the law offenders, puts an end to the individuals who keep breaking the law, and also ensures that instill fear to criminals, who would otherwise commit a certain crime which was previously committed by someone who went through the criminal punishment (Steiker 645). The individuals against the idea of criminal punishment state that, it is one of the greatest violations of human rights, that mistakes can occur in the passing of judgments, and even that individuals once killed will create more retaliation and pain to the individuals who are left, and who knew the killed individual (Michigan State University and Death Penalty Information Center 12).
Laws Relating to Criminal Punishment in the US
In the US, there are many laws which are related to the issue of criminal punishment, how it should be conducted. Some of the major laws which can lead an individuals to face the criminal punishment include: the Retaliatory murder of a witness, victim, or informant, sending of injurious articles with intent to kill or resulting in death, the killing involved in a racketeering offense, and even Murder committed during an offense against a maritime fixed platform (Anderson & Waggoner 29). Other major laws which can make an individual face the death charge is the Murder of a member of Congress, an important executive official, or a Supreme Court Justice, the retaliatory murder of a member of the immediate family of law enforcement officials, and even the Destruction of aircraft, motor vehicles, or related facilities resulting in death, as well as bringing in and harboring certain aliens resulting in death.
Execution in the USA
As stated earlier in this text, there are 31 states in the US, which have the death penalty, while 19 of them have abolished the death penalty, and 4 have the death penalty but placed under the governor’s mercy. In the US, the death penalty has been exercised for a long period of time, dating back to the times of independence, where many individuals have been executed for a various reason. Through the US constitution, the death penalty was put in place, to help in passing judgements, and also to ensure that there was effectiveness in the social organization The death penalty has been exercised through various processes, where many individuals have lost their lives, either through lethal injections, burning, gas chambers, squad shooting, as well as electrification processes, as discussed earlier in this text. The execution process is, however, done under certain conditions, and has to follow certain procedures before an individual is executed.
Conditions of Execution in the USA
In the US, executions are carried out under certain conditions. An individual is a subject to murder, through execution methods chosen by the agency if: one leads to Murder related to the smuggling of aliens (8 U.S.C. 1324), if one leads to the Destruction of aircraft, motor vehicles, or related facilities resulting in death (18 U.S.C. 32, 18 U.S.C. 33, and 18 U.S.C. 34), if one leads to a Murder committed during a drug-related drive-by shooting (18 U.S.C. 36), and if Murder is committed at an airport serving international civil aviation (18 U.S.C. 37) (Bureau of Justice Statistics Para 4). There are other major conditions under which an individual is still a subject to execution in the US, such as: if one is involved in a Bank-robbery-related murder or kidnapping (18 U.S.C. 2113), if one is involved in Murder related to sexual exploitation of children (18 U.S.C. 2251), if one is involved in Murder committed during an offense against a maritime fixed platform (18 U.S.C. 2281), if Terrorist murder of a US national in another country (18 U.S.C. 2332).
Conclusion
In conclusion, there are many things which can be drawn from the US criminal punishment and conditions of execution. This study has clearly indicated that, for any individual to be subjected to the criminal punishment, as well as the execution process, they must meet certain conditions, or even commit a certain crime, which is against the laws and regulations set forth by the US constitution. The violation of other people’s rights, engagement in terror attacks, unlawful exploitations, subjection of other people to conditions which can threaten their life, as well as engaging in activities which compromise the safety and the sovereignty of the US, or any state, are some of the major issues which can lead an individual to face the death sentence. This study has also shown that there are various forms of criminal punishments in the US, but the worst is the death penalty, faced by the individuals who commit crimes which cannot be pardoned.
Works Cited
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Ashcroft, Lord. “Crime, Punishment & the People”. Public Opinion and the Criminal Justice Debate. 2011. Online Access http://www.lordashcroft.com/pdf/03042011_crime_punishment_and_the_people.pdf
Blinder, Martin. “Crime, Punishment, and the American Criminal Justice System”. The Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law. Volume 43, pp. 2– 4, 2015. Online Access https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/3f39/c219ebd4cda759b8fe0637f23268231281bb.pdf
Bureau of Justice Statistics, “Capital Punishment, 2010 – Statistical Tables”. 2012. Online Access https://deathpenalty.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceID=004927
Clark, Charles E., “The Function of Law in a Democratic Society”. Yale Law School: Yale Law School Legal Scholarship Repository-9 University of Chicago Law Review. Volume 393 (1942). Online Access http://digitalcommons.law.yale.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=4345&context=fss_papers
Currie, Elliott. “Crime and Punishment in America”. The New York Times Company- Metropolitan Books. 1998. Online Access https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/books/first/c/currie-crime.html
Death Penalty Information Center. “States With and Without the Death Penalty”. 2016. Online Access https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/states-and-without-death-penalty
Drehle, David. “The Death of the Death Penalty”. Time Inc. 2018. Online Access http://time.com/deathpenalty/
Marcus, Paul. “Capital Punishment in the United States and Beyond”. Melbourne University Law Review. Volume 31. 2007. Online Access http://mulr.com.au/issues/31_3/31_3_5.pdf
Materni, Mike C., “Criminal Punishment and the Pursuit of Justice”. 2 Br. J. Am. Leg. Studies. 2013. Online Access https://hls.harvard.edu/content/uploads/2011/09/michele-materni-criminal-punishment.pdf
Michigan State University and Death Penalty Information Center “Arguments for and Against the Death Penalty”. The death Penalty-High School Curriculum. Online Access https://deathpenaltycurriculum.org/student/c/about/arguments/arguments.PDF
Mishra, Shikha. “Theories of Punishment – A Philosophical Aspect”. Imperial Journal of Interdisciplinary Research (IJIR) Vol-2, Issue-8, 2016. Online Access https://www.onlinejournal.in/IJIRV2I8/014.pdf
Steiker, Carol S., “Capital Punishment: A Century of Discontinuous Debate”. Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology. Volume 100, Issue 3, Article 3. Online Access https://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=&httpsredir=1&article=7360&context=jclc
Williams, Mary E., “Capital Punishment”. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data: Thor Swift/Impact Visuals. Online Access http://www.demes.teimes.gr/spoudastirio/E-NOTES/C/Capital_Punishment_Viewpoints.pdf
